Lucinda and Alina are joined by Nana Crawford, social media manager at the British Red Cross, and Hannah Akitt, strategist at the marketing agency Raw London.

They discuss their favourite Christmas campaigns of the year, including Shelter’s “Brave Face” television advert, Samaritans’ “Break the Silence” winter appeal and the British Heart Foundation’s “Gift that keeps on living” campaign, along with the increasingly popular phenomenon of the Santa Dash.

Nana explains how the British Red Cross integrates its social media channels into its festive campaigns. She stresses the importance of listening to audiences in order to communicate in a way that meets their needs and describes her organisation’s deliberate shift in December from e-commerce promotions to content focusing on supporters’ health and wellbeing.

Hannah provides inspiration for last-minute, low-cost Christmas fundraising ideas, aimed particularly at smaller charities wishing to take advantage of the Christmas Eve peak in donations. These include effective email campaigns, and an emphasis on two-way communication. She reminds us that a donor is for life, not just for Christmas.

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